Global Poker Index: Panzica, Patterson Push Upwards; Holz Hangs Onto Lead
Each week, the Global Poker Index releases a list of the top tournament poker players in the world using a formula that takes into account a player's results over six half-year periods. For a look at the entire list, visit the official GPI website. Here's a look at the rankings as of Oct. 19, 2016.
2016 GPI Player of the Year
| Rank | Player | GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Holz | 3637.69 | - |
| 2 | Chance Kornuth | 3336.54 | - |
| 3 | Paul Volpe | 3192.20 | - |
| 4 | David Peters | 3131.44 | - |
| 5 | Adrian Mateos | 3045.89 | - |
| 6 | Nick Petrangelo | 3008.21 | - |
| 7 | Ivan Luca | 2992.47 | - |
| 8 | Jason Mercier | 2931.51 | - |
| 9 | Samuel Panzica | 2927.70 | +20 |
| 10 | Connor Drinan | 2926.70 | -1 |
There's just a little over two months to go in the 2016 Global Poker Index Player of the Year race where Fedor Holz has been enjoying the lead since June. He's on top of the POY for a 19th-straight week, still enjoying a decent-sized lead over nearest challenger Chance Kornuth.
The top 10 all stayed the same again since the last update with one exception. Samuel Panzica leaped up from No. 29 to No. 9 to grab a spot on the list after winning the 379-entry World Poker Tour bestbet Bounty Scramble this week.
Panzica earned a first prize of $354,335 for his victory in the $5,000 buy-in event, and a bevy of POY points as well. Third-place finisher Ankush Mandavia also was able to move up from No. 49 to No. 22 on the POY list thanks to his finish.
GPI 300 Top 10
| Rank | Player | GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Holz | 4872.33 | - |
| 2 | Nick Petrangelo | 4433.32 | - |
| 3 | Jason Mercier | 4303.31 | - |
| 4 | Byron Kaverman | 4247.55 | - |
| 5 | Steve O'Dwyer | 4228.11 | - |
| 6 | Connor Drinan | 4183.95 | - |
| 7 | Anthony Zinno | 4056.54 | +1 |
| 8 | David Peters | 3992.92 | +1 |
| 9 | Bryn Kenney | 3925.19 | +1 |
| 10 | Dominik Nitsche | 3847.43 | +1 |
Holz keeps the No. 1 spot in the overall GPI rankings again as well, also for a 19th week in a row. The next several spots all stay the same, too, with the only change from last week's the top 10 involving Erik Seidel slipping back from No. 7 to No. 12 and those behind him all moving up a notch.
Welcome to the GPI Top 300
| Rank | Player | Total Score |
|---|---|---|
| 153 | Tyler Patterson | 2290.67 |
| 246 | Garrett Greer | 2005.69 |
| 266 | Riley Fuller | 1955.08 |
| 273 | Paul Balzano | 1941.15 |
| 279 | Peter Eichhardt | 1927.61 |
| 294 | Piotr Franczak | 1896.14 |
| 299 | Hady Asmar | 1889.76 |
| 300 | Jerry Wong | 1886.34 |
There were eight newcomers in this week's top 300, with another deep finisher in the WPT bestbet Bounty Scramble, Tyler Patterson, the highest-ranked of the group. Patterson moved all of the way up from No. 317 to No. 153 thanks both to his fourth-place showing in the $5K Main Event and another second-place in a $2,100 side event at bestbet Jacksonville. Patterson's highest previous GPI ranking has been No. 110, last achieved in February of this year.
Garrett Greer took 20th in the WPT bestbet Bounty Scramble, enabling his move up from No. 304 to No. 246. Riley Fuller cashed in 41st, helping him go from No. 316 to No. 266. And sixth-place finisher Paul Balzano makes his GPI top 300 debut this week after moving up from No. 401 to No. 273.
Jerry Wong — one of this year's November Nine in the 2016 World Series of Poker Main Event (read a profile of him here) — also inched up a single spot to No. 300 to join the list. Wong's previous GPI peak has been No. 242 back in August of this year.
Biggest Gains
| Rank | Player | Total GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 153 | Tyler Patterson | 2290.67 | +164 |
| 273 | Paul Balzano | 1941.15 | +128 |
| 160 | Jan Schwippert | 2259.04 | +67 |
| 112 | Jonathan Turner | 2479.72 | +59 |
| 246 | Garrett Greer | 2005.69 | +58 |
Those WPT bestbet Bounty Scramble finishes helped Patterson, Balzano, and Greer all make this week's "Biggest Gains" top five, with Patterson having enjoyed the biggest upward move of anyone in this week's top 300.
Jan Schwippert also made a significant move from No. 227 to No. 160 this week, while Jon "PearlJammer" Turner jumped from No. 171 to No. 112.
Biggest Drops
| Rank | Player | Total GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 272 | Noah Bronstein | 1994.05 | -69 |
| 262 | Jens Lakemeier | 1964.25 | -52 |
| 230 | Dimitar Danchev | 2034.49 | -48 |
| 220 | Shaun Deeb | 2054.79 | -43 |
| 296 | Fabrice Soulier | 1890.98 | -42 |
Finally, among players in the current top 300, Noah Bronstein fell the furthest over the last seven days after going from No. 203 down to No. 272.
What to Expect Next Week
While the WSOP Circuit visits Harrah's Horseshoe Casino Hammond in Indiana and the partypoker WPT Vienna Fesitval of Poker continues in Austria, the poker world's attention will be largely focused on the tiny archipelago of Malta over the next couple of weeks where the European Poker Tour Malta festival is already underway at the Portomaso Casino.
PokerNews is on hand as usual to provide live updates from several different EPT Malta events:
- €25,750 High Roller (October 21-23)
- €5,300 Main Event (October 23-29)
- €10,200 Single-Day High Roller (October 24)
- €10,300 High Roller (October 27-29)
Don't forget also the 2016 888Live Poker Festival London is ongoing as well, with PokerNews likewise on hand providing updates from several events including the Main Event that starts today.
To view the GPI overall rankings in their entirety, visit the official GPI website. While you're at it, follow the GPI on Twitter and its Facebook page.
